Gate-locking means.



G. E. ERIGSSON.

GATE LOOKING MEANS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 15, 1912.

1,093,174. Patented Apr. 14, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Fig.1.

GUSTAV E. ERICSSON, 0F DUBGIS, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE HALF TO EDWARD W. WEBSTER, OF DUBOIS, PENNSYLVANIA.

GATE-LOCKING MEANS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 15, 1912.

Patented Apr. 14h, 191 f. Serial No. 703,866.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GUsTAv E. ERICSSON, a citizen of the United States, and residing at Dubois, in the county of Glearfield and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gate- Locking Means, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in gate and door locking devices, and relates particularly to devices for locking the gates or doors of wells or shafts, such as elevator shafts, mine gate shafts and the like.

The embodiment of the invention which is herein illustrated and will be described and claimed, was designed particularly for the locking of the sliding gates which are employed at the mouths or openings of mine shafts, although the invention is not confined in its application to such particular use. I

In the operation of the cages or cars in mine shafts, it is the usual practice to opcrate the cages or cars at a point considerably removed from the mouth of the mine shaft. As the engineer or attendant at the en gine which operates the cages or cars is not in a position where he may observe whether the gate or door which guards the entrance to the mouth of the shaft has been closed before he operates the cage or car, many accidents have happened due to the gate or door being open and the cage or car started, such gate or door being left open after the cage has moved away from the mouth of the shaft. In some locations, it is provided by law that safety means must be provided whereby the gates or doors will be positively looked that such accidents may not happen.

It is the primary object of my invention therefore to provide simple and effective means for automatically locking the controlling means for the engine or motor which operates the cage or car of the shaft, whereby the engine cannot be operated to move the cage or car unless the gate or door guarding the entrance is closed and locked.

The invention embodies means for manually locking and unlocking the gate or doors in connection with automatically operated means for locking the controlling means of the engine or motor when the gate ready to receive them,

or door is open, and for automatically releasing the engine or motor locking means when the gate or door is closed.

Further objects of the invention will appear hereinafter as the same is more fully described and then claimed, and in describ ing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings illustrating a practical embodiment of the invention as applied to the gates which guard the entrance to a mine shaft, and in the detailed description, like numerals of reference will be employed to designate like parts throughout the different views of the drawings, in which Figure l is a plan view of a mine shaft, showing the two cages therein partly broken away, illustrating one of the cages in the raised and the other in the lowered position, the gate for the cage which is down being shown in the closed position, and the gate for the cage which is up, being shown (in dotted lines) in open position. Fig. 2 is a similar view in side elevation, and illustrating the engine locking means and the circuit between such locking means and the switches at the shaft. Fig. 3 is a detail longitudinal sectional view of the manual lock for the gate or gates, showing the electrical switches in cross-section, anch illustrating a part of one of the gates. Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the gate locking mechanism and of the switches by means of which the looking of the engine is controlled, and, Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the same, the sockets for the manual lock in both Figs. 4 and 5 being in section.

In the operation of the cages or cars of mine shafts, it is a common and usual practice to station an attendant or signalman at the entrance to the mine shaft, whose out-y it is to give the signal to the engineer, usually located at some remote point, to start the engine whereby to lower or elevate the cage. Many serious accidents have happened by reason of the elevator gate being left open after the car or cage had moved away from the entrance to the mine shaft, and oftentimes workmen, during the prevailing darkness, seeing the elevator gate open, supposed the cage was at the entrance whereas the cage had been lowered. To guard against such accidents as the above, I provide a manually operable lock which is controlled by the aty tendant, and in connection therewith, I provide automatic means for locking the controlling means of the engine, whereby should the attendant or signalman fail to close and lock the gate, the engineer or attendant at the engine cannot operate the same to move the cage or car until the gate in front of the entrance to the shaft is closed.

In the illustrated embodiment of my invention, 10 indicates a cage or car which is shown in the elevated position, and 11 the other cage or car shown in the lowered position, it being the common and usual practice in connection with mine shafts to provide two cages or cars, one being up when the other is down and vice versa. 12 designates the guides upon which such cages or cars slide and at the entrance to the shaft I provide a manually operable gate locking mechanism controlled by the attendant or signalman at the shaft. This mechanism comprises, in connection with a, suitablymounted supporting base or member 13 a pair of superposed levers 14, 15 respectively. The member 13 at its inner end has a strap or keeper 16, to which the inner end of the lever 14 is pivoted as at 17. the lever 15 being in turn pivoted substantially mid-way between its ends as at 18 to the lever 14.

The lever 15 at its inner end extends a considerable distance beyond the member 13 and carries a rod 19 extending transversely therethrough, forming an arm on each side of the lever 15 at the inner end of the latter. This rod is preferably yielding to some extent, and in practice, I have employed a rod formed of spring steel wire inserted through an eye in the inner end of the lever 15 and held by a set screw 20. The free ends of these arms are adapted to engage respectively with plates 21 carried by the cages 10 and 11, one arm being always free, and the other engaged according to the direction in which the lever 15 is moved.

The lever 15 at its forward end projects outwardly, preferably a slight distance in front of the guarding gates of the elevator shaft, the forward end of the lever 14 however, terminating short of the inner face of the gates of the elevator shaft and carrying a transverse locking member 22, provided on its ends with heads 23 adapted to enter receiving elements as sockets 24 carried by the respective gates 25, 26. Springs 27 are arranged in said sockets 24, the lever 15 being held in the position to which it has been moved, against the action of one or the other of the springs 27, by engagement with the teeth of a rack bar 28 mounted on the support 13.

On the lever 14, a short distance from the forward end thereof, is a cross-bar 29 provided intermediate its ends with a tapering recess or seat 30, which cross-bar forms 5 an operating element for the main automatic switch, as will hereinafter more fully appear.

The gates 25, 26 herein illustrated are, it will be understood, adapted to slide vertically to open and closed positions respectively. Before one or the other of the gates may be opened, the attendant or signalman must'operate the lever 15 and the cage or car guarded by said gate must be in the elevated or raised position. To this end, the

abut-ments 21 adapted to be engaged by the arms formeclby the cross rod 19 are so placed on the cages or cars, that the car must be in the raised or elevated position in order to allow one or the other of said arms to engage with its respective plate 21. In case neither car or cage is positioned so that the arms will engage one or the other of plates 21, there being no abutment pro-v vided for the ends of the rod 19, the lever 15 simply rocks on its pivot 18, without performing any unlocking operation. When however, one of the cars is at the top, for instance, the car or cage 10', the lever 15 is thrown to the right as "illustrated in Fig. 1, thus engaging the arm on the left hand side of the lever with the abutment plate 21 on car or cage 10, and withdrawing the locking bolt from socket 24 carried by the gate 25, so that said gate 25 may be raised.

In connection with the above locking and unlocking mechanism for the gates, I provide the automatic means for locking the controller of the engine or motor, herein illustrated as electrically actuated, though obviously, any automatic means desired may be en'iployed. To accomplish this, I provide a switch board 31 located in proximity to the forward ends of levers 14 and 15, and on this board I provide a main switch, which operated by the manually operatedlever 15. I also provide auxiliary switches on this same switch board, which are opened and closed by the car or cars. The main switch member comprises the stationary contactplates 32 and a slidable make and break member adapted to make contact with both the plates 32 and which carries a depending pin 34 having a beveled lower end adapted, in the closed position of the main switch, to seat in the tapering seat 30 in the cross bar 29. The gate "25 carries a contact arm 35, and the gate 26 carries a similar arm 36. For each arm 35, 36, I provide a pail of spring contacts 37, 38, carried by the switch board 31, the arms 37 being engaged V with the arms 38 by the contact arms 35, 36 of the gates. A spring as 39 tends to insure contact between member 33 andplates 32 when the main switch is closed, 4 7

Locking means for the engine is shown largely diagrammatically in Fig. 2, 40 des ignat-ing generally the throttle valve of the engine, and 41 the operating lever therefor.

Suitably mounted adjacent to the throttle valve is a solenoid 42, the core 43 of which is pivotally connected to a latch 44 adapted to engage with the toothed bar 45 which connects lever 41 with the stem of the throttle valve, the latch 44 being pivotally supported whereby when the solenoid 42 is energized and the core 43 drawn into the solenoid, the latch 44 will be withdrawn from engagement with the toothed bar 45, and when the solenoid 42 is deenergized, the core and latch 44 will drop by gravity so that the latch will engage said bar 45.

As illustrated in Fig. 4, both gates are in the locked position. In this position, pin 34 rests in seat 30, so that member 33 is forced in contact with plates 32 by its spring 39 so as to complete a circuit from the source of electrical energy 46, over wire 47, contact 37, contact 38, wire 48, contact 32, plate 33, contact 32, wire 49, contact 38, contact 37 and wire through the solenoid 42 back to the battery or source of electrical energy 46, thus energizing the solenoid and withdrawing latch 44 from engagement with the bar 45, leaving the throttle valve of the engine free to be operated. lVhen however, one of the cages or cars as 10 is in the elevated or raised position, and lever 15 is moved to the right, the projecting arm at the inner end of said lever engages plate 21 on the car, the lever 15 at this time by reason of the abutment 21, fulcruming on the end of the arm 19 that is engaging plate 21, thus carrying lever 14 therewith, and causing pin 34 as it rides out of the tapering seat 30 to raise member 33 and break the circuit between said member and plates 32, thus breaking the circuit to the solenoid, deenergizing the latter, and allowing the latch 44 to drop into engagement with the bar 45, thereby locking the throttle valve of the engine against operation so long as the gate remains open. A similar operation would take place when gate 25 was to be opened, the lever 15 of course being moved in the reverse direction to open said gate 26. When the gates are closed and locked, the circuit is completed to energize the solenoid 42 and allow tree oper ation of the cages, the circuit being completed through the main and auxiliary switches which it will be understood are connected in series. Upon the opening of either or both gates, the circuit is broken so as to deenergize the solenoid and insure the locking of the throttle so that the engine may not be operated.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. The combination with a well or shaft, a cage to travel therein, and means for controlling the movements of said cage, of a gate for closing the entrance to said cage, locking means for said gate, and automatically-operated locking means for the cage controlling means, said latter locking means being rendered active by the unlocking of the gate and including a switch operable to provide such locking activity solely in the presence of the cage.

2. The combination with a cage, means for controlling the movements of the cage, and a gate for closing the entrance to the cage, of a lock-receiving element arried by the gate, a manually-operable locking member sup ported independently of the gate adjacent thereto and engageable with said receiving element to lock the gate, said locking member being normally in engagement with said element and movable to break such engagement and unlock the gate solely when the cage is opposite the gate, and automaticallyoperated locking means for the cage-controlling means comprising a main switch operated by the manually-operable locking member and an auxiliary switch operated by the gate, said automatic locking means being operable only when the gate is unlocked.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GUSTAV E. ERIOSSON.

Witnesses:

G. W. TOZIER, WV. T. SMITH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

